Redemption from the Abyss
by Kriegmarine
Summary: Deep within a hidden citadel of the bloodthirsty Jashinist cult, a vile summoning takes place. From the chaos and strife of another world comes a demon of the abyss, but why does 'she' look like a prepubescent child and how will her presence affect the future of the Elemental Nations? M/violence and gore. AU events. Character death. Slow start.
1. Chapter 1

Uploaded: 2/15/2013.

Written: 2/3-15/2013

Edited: 2/16/2013 (Version 1.01)

**Hello people. Kriegmarine here to give you a (hopefully) exciting crossover between Claymore and Naruto. This will be a side project of mine while I write the Kyuubi Revealed series (currently being rewritten as I type this to better portray the Narutoverse and its characters), so do not expect ANY rapid updates. For my followers, Ghosts of the Past (a HALO/Mass Effect/Killzone crossover) has been pulled from FanFiction until I have a better understanding of the ME verse; It has not and never will be abandoned so do not fret.**

**Pertaining to this fic, while I know she was among the first all-female generation of Claymores, I could not find out Riful's Claymore generation (ie 17th or 42nd gen Claymore) so I will be ever-so-slightly winging it by making her part of the 16th gen. I will say that it does help calculating her age knowing that Clare is a member of the 150th gen of Claymores. I will also be setting the length of a warrior generation to 5 years, from implantation of Yoma flesh to the end of the new generation's training period, making Riful around 670-690 years old when she meets Clare.**

"Talking/Jutsu"

"_Whispering"_

'_Thinking'_

"Text in a book"

"**Demon/Summon talking**"

"_Demon/Summon Whispering"_

**'**_**Demon/Summon thinking'**_

_FYI: My stories shall all be rated "M" for safety's sake. FanFiction is not responsible for the content presented within this story._

Disclaimer: I will make it clear that I do not own Claymore/Naruto or any of its characters, settings, storyline, and/or techniques save my own creations.

**X~X~X~X~X**

**Redemption from the Abyss**

**X~X~X~X~X**

"How much further until we get to Hanel, Pa?"

The old man holding the reigns to the team of horses pulling his aging wagon looked over to his son, irritated with his day-to-day complaining.

"How many damned times do I need ta tell yeh! We'll get there when we get there!"

His son shuffled around within his seat from his father's rebuttal.

"_... You said that an hour ago..._" The young man mumbled, hunched over and pointedly looking away from his merchant father.

Unfortunately, his aged father's hearing had yet to give out.

"And I'll likely have ta say it again an hour from now, yeh damned pest!" The old man snapped back, both startling and embarrassing his only traveling companion.

Sighing once more in defeat for the umpteenth time that day, the brown-haired, 22 year old man decided it would likely be best for him to simply take in the sights they were traveling through once more lest he receive more of his cranky father's ire.

They were currently riding through a forest on their way to a village called Hanel in the western-most reaches of Lautrec, one of five regions that made up the land of Turiel, to help sell his father's wares. It had so far been a rather pleasant, if somewhat boring, trip; The forests that the father-son duo had passed through hummed with life. The fields they occasionally made camp upon were mesmerizing to watch during the warm days, the prevalent breeze common throughout the region making gentle rippling patterns upon fields of wild grass, and made comfortable spots for star gazing during the cool nights. The statuesque mountains they skirted past were topped with snow, their peaks glowing white under the daytime sunlight. He had originally been against going with his Pa to learn the old man's trade, the only reason for him going being his lack of a apprenticeship within their hometown of Ruval and his mother's prodding, but having dealt with picturesque views like this throughout their trip he was slowly beginning to change his mind. His thoughts were brought to a halt with a surprised yelp from his father.

"Whoa!"

His father struggled with the reigns for a few moments before he was finally able to slow and stop the horses' progress, the rickety sound of the wagon finally silenced. Concerned, the man spoke up.

"What is it, Pa?"

His father seemed to ignore him, instead looking off towards a point further along the dirt road they had been traveling upon.

"... Wha' is tha' lil' lass doin' way ou' here, I wonder?"

Confused, the man switched from looking at his father to matching his gaze, attempting to spot whatever it was his old man was looking at. It took him only a moment to finally spot what had his father concerned; A child. She looked to be in her early teens with slightly tanned skin and straight, raven hair that reached down to her waist. She wore a simple outfit consisting of nothing more than a yellow sundress. She was waving rather enthusiastically towards them. The two watched her for a few more moments before the son spoke in a low voice.

"_... So... does this mean we are close to Hanel?_"

His father's response was to smack him on the head. The wagon began moving once more a few moments later, the brunette rubbing his head and grumbling obscenities under his breath. Another 15 seconds passed before they pulled up to the girl, the sun continuing its gradual descent towards the western horizon.

"Wha' is a lass like yeh doin' all the way ou' here in the woods?"

The man looked up, ignoring the small bruise forming on his head out of curiosity for the girl's answer. He idly noted her chocolate-brown eyes and lack of shoes; Was this girl lost? He quickly refocused his attention when she began to speak.

"Hello! I'm truly sorry to bother you like this but could you two help me; I'm lost."

The brunette mentally smirked. '_Nailed it!_'

"Wha' do yeh mean 'lost'?" The older of the two men questioned, watching the girl with wary eyes.

"Well..." The girl began, idly brushing away some errant dirt that had clung to a portion of her dress. "I was playing in the forest like I always had when I decided it was probably time to go back home. Going back, I found myself going through areas that I had never been before. It has been several days since I've been gone and my family is likely worried sick for me... Would you mind if I were to catch a ride with you two until you get to a town called Hanel?"

Several moments passed without either party speaking, the male duo thinking on how to respond. As the silence stretched on, one of the two horses shuffled around and whinnied in discomfort; Something that did not go unnoticed by the wizened eyes of the merchant. The brunette was about to answer her when his Pa spoke.

"I would help yeh, lil' lass, but I don' have the room available on this 'ere wagon. I do know tha' another wagon shou' be comin' by soon; I know they got the room ta take yeh on board."

The man was confused by his father's answer; They were, as far as he knew, the only people traveling to Hanel. The only way there could be others traveling to the village was if they were traveling at the same pace as them or taking a different route. This raised another question; How would his father know this? On top of that, he knew for a fact that they could always make room for her. He voiced his concern to those present.

"Oi, Pa? What do you- OW! The hell was that for?!" He spoke, yelling at the end after getting smacked on the head once more.

The older of the two travelers glared at his son, giving him a look that spoke of future lectures; Lectures that usually involved gratuitous amounts of yelling and a belt. His silent message clear, the old man looked back over to the concerned girl, his son pale in his seat.

"Excuse muh son, lass; He has yet ta learn proper manners." She giggled at this before frowning. "Anyho', it shou'n't be much longer 'til they arrive. Tru'y sorry ta leave yeh like dis, bu' I mus' be goin' now."

**X~X~X**

As the aging merchant made to get his team of horses moving once more, The girl's frown seemed to deepen. Turning towards the departing pair, she spoke lowly; Her tone that of disappointment.

"_... I see... I was hoping it would not turn out like this, but you simply leave me with no other choice..._"

**X~X~X**

Suddenly, with little warning, The wagon the merchant and his son were riding was flipped onto its side. The two men were thrown from their seats, the more elderly of the two into one of the numerous trees that made up the forest on the side of the road. The younger man was thrown into the air before hitting his head on a hard patch of earth, losing consciences almost instantly.

**X~X~X**

The brunette's blue eyes fluttered open, pain racking his body. He immediately tried to sit up, worried about his father and the girl, but a wave of pain and vertigo forced him to lie back down. '_Wha... what happened?_' He wondered, trying to let his body recuperate for a few moments. As he did, he noticed that his hearing was impaired and a nauseating scent was filling the air. Scared that he had perhaps lost some of his hearing in the crash (or whatever it was that had happened earlier), he tried to speak. He heard himself say a dulled, "Hello?", but it was so quiet that only by knowing he had tried to speak was he able to hear it. His breathing hastened.

'_Calm down, Red..._' He thought, trying to calm himself using the nickname his mother gave him after getting a small crate of tomatoes dumped on him by accident while growing up. '_This is only a temporary thing. It will come back, just be patient..._'

It felt like hours had passed, the mysterious odor making the brunette retch from its vileness, while it was, in fact, only a couple of minutes before his hearing improved to where he could pick up sounds from the surrounding area. His worry grew to fear when all he could hear was the sound of chewing and an occasional wet squelching noise, the normal noise that made up a forest absent. Could it be...

**X~X~X**

While growing up, the brunette was told numerous stories about Turiel. Many of the stories he was told during bedtime were those of heroes and their adventures. There were, however, other stories he was told; Stories of dire warning. These stories spoke of grotesque demons of the most vile nature whom fed upon human entrails and blood. Creatures faster and deadlier than any man could ever hope to be, moving at speeds quicker than the human mind could comprehend and capable of physical feats that were simply impossible for any human to duplicate. Creatures that could take on the appearance of anyone, be it a daughter or a father, and never once raise suspicion of their true nature. These creatures were called Yoma and they were not creatures of myth or legend, but an ever-present danger to the people of Turiel.

**X~X~X**

The merchant's son tried to get up once more, but was once more forced down due to vertigo and pain. Gasping harshly, he rolled himself over onto his belly; It was painful, but nowhere near as much as trying to stand. Slowly dragging his body around to face the road, he saw the wagon; It was on its side, one of the two wheels on the left side having broken off. The wares they were carting to Hanel to sell were strewn across the ground. One of the horses they used to move the wagon was lying on the ground not too far away, its chest still. The other horse was nowhere to be seen. There was something else missing.

'_… Where is Pa?_'

As if in reply, a squelch and a moan that bespoke of agonizing pain came from the other side of the wagon. The brunette froze in terror.

'_Pa!... the girl!... Shit! I gotta do something to save them!_'

Fighting off the debilitating waves of pain and vertigo through sheer will, the brunette slowly climbed back onto his feet. Shuffling forward on unsteady legs, he moved towards the back of the upturned wagon; They stowed their camping gear, such as bedding and an axe for woodcutting, in the back of the wagon. Tears began to fill his eyes as the worry, pain, nausea, and stench he felt and smelled grew in strength. It seemed like an eternity had passed before he finally made it to the back of the wagon, but there was a problem; The axe was not there.

Another pain-filled moan was uttered, male in tone, followed closely by the sound of something snapping.

'_Dammit... I need to get to them faster!_'

The brunette searched around the wreck of the wagon, eyes bleary from pain, before he spotted the axe on the ground a couple feet away. As quietly as he could in his condition, he shuffled over to it and bent down to pick it up. As he felt his hand grip the make-shift weapon, he looked over to where all the noise was coming from and froze; The girl was kneeling next to his father, her body shaking as if she was crying. He had thought a Yoma attacked, but it would appear that he had been wrong.

Cautiously, the brunette picked up the axe and began to move in an awkward gait, using the tool like a cane, towards the girl all the while listening to her choked gasps. As he got closer, he got a better look at his father and, in the moment that he did, stopped in shock and anguish; His father's vacant eyes seemed to be staring at him, wide in their last moments of life from pain and terror he could never possibly imagine.

"I ended it..."

He was jolted out of his anguish by the sudden words of the girl.

"I ended him... Broke his neck..."

He felt numb; Here was the man who had raised him, scolded him, and comforted him throughout his life lying dead before him. The nausea that had been festering in his stomach finally spewed forth, painting the ground beneath him into a collage of yellows. He coughed a couple of times to clear his esophagus, using the axe to support his weakened body. It was then that full comprehension of what the girl had said dawned on him.

"You... Why... WHY DID YOU KILL HIM?!" He finally roared out, previous pain forgotten.

The girl's shuddering movement ceased. "Because of what I am."

This derailed the man's building rage. "Because of... What the... Hell?" He had expected a completely different answer than the one he was given. Comprehension finally dawned upon him a moment later. "... Oh dear god..." The little girl didn't need help; _She_ had never been in any danger. The _girl_, he used the term sparingly as he did not know what gender the Yoma before him held, slowly stood up.

"I had hoped that it would never come to this; Unlike others of my kind, I am not one to torture my food." She began to turn towards him. "For, you see..." He was finally able to see her front.

"... There is simply no fun to be had from it anymore." Calmly, yet whimsically, spoke the blood-soaked monster that stood before the brunette, clutching his father's half-eaten liver in her hand like one would an apple or pear.

The man stood rooted in his spot, breathing heavily. Here before him stood a monster of which nightmares were made from. He did not want to die; What would his mother do without he and his father? She already was beginning to lose her eyesight, so she could not truly support herself at this point. What would his girlfriend, a waitress at the local inn, do once he was gone? Would she simply forget about all the times they had spent together? Was this really all his life led up to; Simply being food for a monster?

"... N-no, I have too many people waiting on me at home; Mom, Theresa... I won't let it end like this, not after what you have done! NOT TODAY!" Strengthening his resolve and the grip on the axe, he rushed forward; Monster or not, he would avenge his father and live for all the people he cared for. This lil' _bitch_ would not be the end of him!

He made it three steps before ribbon-like tendrils, as black as night, shot forth from the girl's head and lodged itself into his brain and heart.

**X~X~X**

Riful, ex-warrior of the 16th, first all-female, generation of Claymores and one of the two 'Abyssal Ones', stared hard at the corpse of the brunette hanging limp from her ribbon/tendrils. She was being truthful to the man in front of her when she said she was not one to torture her food, the old man not withstanding due to his forcing her hand, and so ended the brunette's life quickly. She had honestly thought he would try to escape from her through the forest. What had happened instead truly surprised her. From her surprise gradually came respect for the man held aloft before her; she had labeled him courageous rather than stupid.

"... Such will to live, even against overwhelming odds. To raise a hand against a creature he knew was superior in every aspect..." She sighed dreamily, dropping the ravaged liver and clasping her hands before her. "It is people such as you that I truly admire! A will to live with the courage to support it in the most dire of situations; A strength few people in this day and age value. People like you are simply fabulous! Oh, I truly wish we could have been friends!" at this she sighed dejectedly. "Alas, It would seem that our friendship was never meant to be... You being a human and all." She laid the man's corpse onto the ground, belly up, and walked towards him as her ribbon/tendrils receded back into her body.

"Well... It would truly be a pity to waste what you have provided me. Soooo..." She perked up, returning to her normally-childish persona, and plopped down onto her knees next to the still-warm corpse.

"Bon Appetit!"

**X~X~X**

**Claymore – Dubbed 'Claymores' by civilians due to the weapons they use, they are swordsmen created by an entity simply called 'The Organization' by transplanting the flesh and blood of a Yoma into a Human. Primarily used to combat Yoma and Awakened Beings. Are ranked according to combat prowess with the number one slot taken by the best warrior. Were originally made up entirely of men, but the Organization switched to using females due to the short amount of time a male would remain productive before succumbing to overuse of Yoki energy (a feeling that can best be described as 'orgasmic') and awakening.**

**The Organization – An entity formed in order to combat Yoma. Are normally hired by towns to detect and destroy Yoma infestations. Claymores are sent in as part of these transactions to neutralize the Yoma threat. Towns that do not pay or are unable to pay after the elimination of such threats do not receive the protection of the Organization in the future and are usually overrun by Yoma within weeks, if not months.**

**Yoma – Explained within main body of chapter.**

**Awakened Beings (AB) – Also known as 'Voracious Eaters' and thought to simply be older Yoma by the civilian populous, they are Claymores that have 'gone beyond their limit'; This is to say that they have, at one point in time, drawn upon their demonic half's power, Yoki, to a point where they could not revert to their previous half-human state and instead becoming the very monsters they fought. AB strength, abilities, and intelligence (in most cases with the latter) is magnitudes above that of a Yoma and are normally hunted by Claymores ranked 30 and above in groups of 3 or more; Any less is usually considered suicidal.**

**Abyssal Ones (AO) – Same as an Awakened Being except for being Claymores that held the No.1 seat within the Organization. They are left alone by the Organization as there simply isn't anyone that can challenge them. The current AOs during the time period this fic begins are: Isley of the North and Riful of the West; Luciela has yet to be born.**

***EDIT - (2/16/2013)**

**A few spelling errors were fixed and changed the timespan of a Claymore generation from 20 years down to 5 years as advised by larslolxz; I will admit that it makes better sense this way.**


	2. Chapter 2

Uploaded: 2/22/2013.

Written: 2/17-22/2013

Edited: - (Version 1)

**Hello! Krieg here with the next chapter of RftA. This chapter was slightly difficult to write, especially the dialogue of the Jashinists (likely not a wholly accurate representation, but I tried). I also discovered some interesting facts while doing my research; I seriously did not know that Jashinism is a real religion or that Teresa was a member of the 77th gen. of Claymores (much older than I thought she was). Some of Riful's dialogue is based upon her first appearance 7 years after the Battle of Pieta.**

"Talking/Jutsu"

"_Whispering"_

'_Thinking'_

"Text in a book"

"**Demon/Summon talking**"

"_Demon/Summon Whispering"_

**'**_**Demon/Summon thinking'**_

_FYI: My stories shall all be rated "M" for safety's sake. FanFiction is not responsible for the content presented within this story._

Disclaimer: I will make it clear that I do not own Claymore/Naruto or any of its characters, settings, storyline, and/or techniques save my own creations.

**X~X~X~X~X**

**Redemption from the Abyss**

**X~X~X~X~X**

The town of Torrince, situated at the base of Mount Zuul, was once a rather wealthy town. It had, at first, grown at an abated pace but, with the discovery of a large silver vein in the nearby copper mine, the town quickly grew in size due to immigrants looking for wealth. A year went by before enough wealth had been saved that it could afford things most other newly-formed settlements could only dream of; A city wall and a well-equipped garrison of militiamen being among these expensive additions. For a time the town knew prosperity but it was, sadly, the very thing that kept the town safe that led to its downfall; While such defenses deterred any attacks from wandering raiders, it made it a prime location for an Awakened Being to call home; The fortified walls would limit the number of locations a Claymore could enter the town from. Now, years later, the settlement is nothing more than another ghost town in Lautrec, the crumbling keep and the few fading blood stains that had been sprayed across walls and floors alike a testament to the dark night Riful laid claim to Torrince...

**X~X~X**

Three weeks had gone by since Riful had last eaten. Sitting on her wooden throne, a simple, though sturdy and cozy, chair she had found stashed away in the ruins of the once-proud fortress town, the centuries-old being had her legs folded up to her chest, arms wrapped around them in a comfortable embrace, contemplating on how she would acquire her next meal; It wasn't like she had much else to do in this day-and-age.

'_Decisions, decisions... Where to go next..._'

She drummed her fingers on her thighs, 'hmmm...'ing in deep thought.

_'I could always go back to Hanel, but... Nonono, Hanel simply will not do... How about Reeves..._'

Reaching out with her limited, albeit quite powerful, sensing skills that she had trained up over the past century, Riful stretched her senses out towards the general direction of the small village to the north; What she found after several seconds of scanning left her irritated.

'_...It would seem they already have a sizable infestation of Yoma in their midsts... Damn!_' She took a moment to calm down before she sighed, hugging her legs closer to her body. '_That only leaves Renoa in the immediate area... Dummy Dauf and his constant pestering..._'

Dauf was a rather dimwitted, though absurdly strong, Awakened Being from the male generations of Organization warriors whom she had met in her travels, both as a Claymore and as an Awakened Being. A former No.3, he had set up a place for himself near the town of Renoa (She was, frankly, amazed that the town was still standing after all these years; Dauf had no love for Humanity). Even as she thought of the hulking oaf, she was perplexed by him; He would always stop by and see what she was up to when he was in the area. All the other Awakened left her alone, weary of her strength and/or her reputation, but not Dauf; Simple-minded brute seemed like he couldn't get enough of her, even after being forcibly evicted from her home on numerous occasions through the use of her tendrils. Even after all these years dealing with him, Riful simply did not know what to do with him.

Had she been 163 years younger, she would have befriended him within a heartbeat, regardless of his intellect or looks. Riful, however, was not young and had experiences within her lifetime that she would rather leave forgotten; Riful had, in the past when she was a newly-born Awakened, partnered-up with others like herself, something that had never before been done by a being such as herself, but every single one of them had either broke under her ministrations or betrayed her. This had led her, a decade after her last betrayal, to be far more reclusive, still...

_'I could always go to that new village that just popped up, 'Rokut' I believe it is called, however..._' She thought on this for a few moments before sighing once more, bringing her forehead up to her knees as she closed her eyes. '_God I'm lonely...' _

Her self-administered isolation, created primarily to protect herself from future heartache, clashed with her sociable personality; She was fond of being around others, even if it was only with one other person. The result of these clashing emotions was her 'befriending' of Humans, currently a 'safer' option than Awakened Beings; There were days that she had gone to towns, such as Hanel and Reeves, to either buy new clothes with the money she had pilfered from her victims, to eat, or to simply chat with the townsfolk; The last being a brief, though wholly cherished, respite from her lonesome life. Still, it was only a temporary fix at best to a growing problem.

As she contemplated her next course of action along with 'The Dauf Dilemma', a breeze from outside made its way through the dark and winding corridors of the fortified town's keep; Riful's home. It took several minutes but, just as Riful made the decision to go to Renoa, swayed in-part by a subconscious need to simply be, however brief and/or bitter, with someone inhuman like herself, a gentle gust of wind rushed past her, bringing with it fresh air and... something else; a smell that the former No.1 found to be absolutely tantalizing.

Getting out of the sturdy wood chair and deciding she could go to Renoa after finding whatever it was that was exuding such a lovely aroma, Riful wandered out of the lifeless town and into the forest towards the source of the curiously delightful scent.

**X~X~X**

Natsuyo Musashi, Blood Cardinal of the Jashinist Sect within the Land of Fire, was feeling giddy under his calm facade; The Demon Summoning Ritual, a ritual that took ten days to perform from start to finish, was showing far more promise than previous attempts. Here, in an ancient Jashinist Temple hidden deep within a mountain range 5-days distant from Konohagakure, his long-term goal to help his religion's cause was finally within reach; To summon one of Jashin-sama's avatars to the material plane and help purge the world of all non-believers.

"... W-why? Why a-are... You doing t-this?..."

Looking down into the ritualistic seals that had been brushed onto the spacious floor of the temple nearing ten days ago, Musashi eyed one of the ten women being used as sacrifice for the summoning, her abdomen split open and most of her internal organs placed reverently around her in a circular pattern, as she wheezed out words between bloodied coughs. Musashi began to meander towards her, skirting the crimson seal and his many chanting cohorts, while basking in the agony these lucky women were exuding; Jashin-sama rewards all who partake in sacrifice to his cause.

Upon reaching her, the ornately-dress man knelt down as close to her as he could, carefully staying outside of the complex seal array lest he disrupt it in anyway. When he finally spoke, it was with reverence to the woman laid out before him. She, along with the other nine women, were to give birth to a creature of providence on this day; They may have been heathens a few weeks ago, but they were now unworthy of anything but the utmost respect and adoration.

"This world must be purged of Infidels, Hatsuyo-san. Only those who follow the teachings of Jashin will find a life of meaning, of purpose..."

The women, Hatsuyo Saeko, coughed once more, her precious blood raining back down onto her pale face and golden hair. She spoke once more, gasping for breath between words.

"Y-you... Are s-sick..."

Musashi frowned before he spoke once more.

"... It is not I that is sick, Hatsuyo-san..."

His eyes gained a half-manic gleam to them.

"... But, in fact, this world. This world and its people are racked with pain, Hatsuyo-san. A pain that can be easily commuted to pleasure if one were only to accept the teachings of Jashin. What we are doing here is to bring forth..." He made a grabbing motion with his hand, trying to think of an appropriate term for the creature he was calling upon. "... An Exemplar, if you will, to cure that pain while removing those who would renounce such a wondrous gift for it is they who would deny Jashin's charity that spread the falsehood, the disease, that is pain."

Suddenly, without warning, all the women in the sealing array arched their backs in unison, mouths agape in silent screams. The seals spread along the walls that helped to stabilize the ritual began to burn a bright red, tinging the inner sanctum of the temple crimson. The Blood Cardinal wore a shit-eating grin; The ritual was to succeed!

**X~X~X**

Riful had wandered around on foot for over an hour, narrowing down the source of the scent, before she finally found herself in a small clearing deep within the forest that dominated the region. As she glanced to and fro around the clearing, hair swaying back and forth, her curiosity turned to confusion. '_I do not understand; This is clearly the source yet... There is nothing here..._' Her confusion quickly switched to suspicion.

She took a whiff of the air, but there was nothing besides the scents that normally make up a forest and the intoxicating aroma to fill her nostrils. Furrowing her brows, Riful quickly scanned the area, both visually and through her yoki-detection skills, only to come up with a blank; How could this be? The only way that one would be able to hide their presence, especially from this distance, was if...

'_… The Organization! How... daring!_'

Had she been a creature of lesser strength, Riful would have either lashed out immediately or run in a bid to escape these hunters. That was, however, just the thing.

Riful was not weak.

As she was, the raven-haired girl had little to worry from the warriors, but she always took delight in meeting them. She had, however, not spoken to a Claymore in the past several years. While they all were usually killing yoma alone or were gathered together for an Awakened Being hunt, she was generally left alone. the few times she had stumble upon them were interesting and, dare she say it, _fun_ encounters. This meeting was already proving to be more interesting than the rest if only for the fact that she was being finally being targeted.

Standing confidently in the middle of the clearing, arms held low and clasped together, giving off the impression of an obedient child, Riful spoke out cheerily to her would-be attackers.

"A pleasant day to you, warriors! Though you have yet to reveal yourselves, it truly is a pleasure to make your acquaintance! I hope we can all get along!" She performed a short bow within the clearing, completing her greeting.

Only silence replied, the normal noise that made up a forest having stilled from her outburst. As seconds turned to minutes, her cheerful demeanor began to sour.

'_Here I am, going out of my to introduce myself, and they deem themselves above such pleasantries; The least they could do for luring me all this way is speak!_'

In a blur of motion, she lashed out with her tendrils at the surrounding forestry, intent on flushing out the ambushing hunters.

The assault was lightning-fast, Her tendrils shooting forth before receding a moment later, leaving behind a dense cloud of destruction that obscured her vision. She idly hoped that none were hurt when their cover was destroyed, but allayed that upon further thought; If they were unable to survive her attack, she was at the very least granting them a quick death.

"I compliment your attempt to use of suppressants in this endeavor, but they will be of little use to you..."

She smiled whimsically as the dust and debris in the air began to clear, expecting to see the shocked faces of a younger generation of female Claymores along with some blood and gore. What greeted her instead was a section of the forest that had just been ravaged by herself, bereft of any signs of the hunters; They must be highly skilled if they were able to escape her attack unscathed.

Riful smirked; She loved a good challenge.

As she prepared to lay waste to a larger section of the surrounding forest, a most curious thing happened; A black orb, tinged blue around its perimeter, suddenly formed in the clearing beside the raven-haired girl. Its unexpected appearance stunned the Abyssal One. So shocked was she that it took several moments after her sundress was ripped away from her body for Riful to regain her bearings; Those few moments were all the anomaly needed to suck the lightly-tanned being into its dark embrace. It stayed motionless for a few seconds after snatching the girl, hovering above the earth and sucking in more debris, before it imploded upon itself in a crash of thunder.

Almost all proof of the aberration's brief appearance was erased a couple days later by a passing rainstorm. The only proof left of it having ever existed was a sizable dimple of earth that had been pulled up and towards the all-consuming schism.

**X~X~X**

Interdimensional space was a fact of life to the people of the Elemental Nations, most commonly used for storage of items such as food or weaponry, but was completely unheard of among the people whom resided in Turiel; Such knowledge gaps were common throughout the multiverse. The space held many names and was used in a variety of ways:

Slipspace...

The Void between Worlds...

Kakashi's secret IchIcha stash...

It was, however, on one rather mundane day that Riful of the West was pulled, with nary a struggle, from one world to another through the use of this strange and wondrous space. The repercussions from the transfer would change _everything_.

**X~X~X**

Musashi had watched the ten eviscerated women be consumed by the void that suddenly dominated the spacious temple chamber. He held out his arms, robes and Jashin pendant fluttering madly in the maelstrom of charged air, in an embrace as dirt flew about the quaking room, the floor indenting from the pressure exerted upon it, while waiting with his brothers and sisters for the Herald of Jashin to arrive.

It took less time than expected.

With a roar like thunder, something tan and black fell from the rip in space. A few seconds and more debris later, the dimensional rift imploded, sending out a shockwave that further indented the floor and sent out a dense wall of air and dust. Many of the Jashinists, clothed in ornate robes of red, black, and gold, were knocked over by the powerful gust of wind, but not Musashi. As soon as the shockwave passed, he rushed forward to the Purveyor of Jashin's word. It took him several seconds of running across the fractured floor to reach the crater in which his religion's future lay; What he found within was perhaps the greatest disappointment one could possibly feel in the entirety of their lives.

A little girl, stark naked from head to toe and partially covered by her ribbon-like locks of straight, black hair, was lying splayed-out in the center of the depression.

Musashi looked down upon the girl in open disgust; How could such a frail-looking _girl_, who couldn't possibly be older than his second daughter and even less threatening in physical looks, even remotely be considered a creature of pain and destruction?

Oh... If only he knew.

**X~X~X**

**End o' Chapter**

**to help explain some things that may need explaining:**

****** - I started off the chapter as I did because... yeah? Couldn't really think of any other way to open it at the time.**

** - Riful and Dauf had yet to get together in this fic. It was beginning to happen, but the Demon Summoning Ritual put a wrench into that. She has always seemed, to me, to be very sociable, but I didn't want Naruto to be the 'third wheel' as it were between her and Dauf. As such, made it where she had previous difficulties befriending other ABs.**

** - Suppressants allow a Claymore to completely hide their yoki presence. Unfortunately, this also weakens them as they are unable to draw upon their yoki.**

****** - I know that the Organization attacking Riful would be stupid at this point in time; Such an attack leaves them open to Isley of the North. Still, people/groups have done dumber things.**

** - Why Riful would think she is being (incorrectly) ambushed by Claymores is because; **

**1. The Organization is constantly trying to create better warriors. Such experiments could include greater emphasis on yoki detection, strength, speed, control, or even hiding their yoki. An example of the latter could be Raphaela (Though it is not what she was really meant for).**

**2. Being one of the two Abyssal Ones, Riful makes for a rather dangerous adversary to the Organization; One they would rather see dead than living.**

** - Riful was drawn to the clearing by the blood from the sacrifices (should be fairly apparent, but you never know...)**.

** - The reason why Musashi was unable to ascertain Riful's demonic nature is due to her ability to mask her yoki so heavily that it can only be detected by the very best sensors.**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this installment and please leave a review!**

**KM**


	3. Chapter 3

Uploaded: 3/18/2013.

Written: 3/2-18/2013

Edited: - (Version 1)

**Hello! Krieg here with the next chapter of RftA. Sorry it took so long to update; Really had to iron out this chapter.**

"Talking/Jutsu"

"_Whispering"_

'_Thinking'_

"Text in a book"

"**Demon/Summon talking**"

"_Demon/Summon Whispering"_

**'**_**Demon/Summon thinking'**_

_FYI: My stories shall all be rated "M" for safety's sake. FanFiction is not responsible for the content presented within this story._

Disclaimer: I will make it clear that I do not own Claymore/Naruto or any of its characters, settings, storyline, and/or techniques save my own creations.

**X~X~X~X~X**

**Redemption from the Abyss**

**X~X~X~X~X**

There were few times in her 201 years of life that Riful felt like she was being wholly ripped asunder. The first time were the excruciating months it took for her body to adapt to the changes made during the operation that made her into a half-human, half-yoma hybrid. The second time she had felt such pain was when she had embraced her true nature and awakened, a day of infamy for her late 'allies' within the Organization. The third and, until now, final time she had felt such pain was when she renounced companionship after 'Silver-Tongued' Integra, a former No. 3, attempted to behead her during a brief nap.

The transfer had lasted only a few seconds, but those few seconds within the chaotic void felt like an eternity of torture and madness. As soon as she entered the black orb, Riful felt her body be twisted, contorted, stretched, and crushed in ways that very few could truly explain or understand. Her screams of agony unequalled were made mute or, in disjointed moments, ear-rending by the warped properties of the realm she was forcibly dragged through. Her mind, having only barely regained its bearings before entering the anomaly, nearly shattered as it felt pain that could only be described as being stabbed by thousands of white-hot daggers. She bled like she had never done before:

Ears.

Nose.

Mouth.

Eyes.

If she could bleed from any given point on her body, she bled. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on one's opinion of the end result of her entering the Elemental Nations), She was able to survive the trip.

It was only made possible due to her fortitude and inhuman body.

Barely conscience after her ordeal, Riful vaguely felt herself fall, accompanied by a roar like that of thunder, from an uncertain height onto cold, hard stone. She heard a loud crack emanate from the force of the impact before it was drowned-out by bellowing wind; Whether it had been herself or the stone to break was a question for another time. She breathed heavily for a few moments after her fall, her aching body lying face-down as she felt dirt and debris brush erratically against her body; These were her first breaths since escaping from that realm of nightmares. Those few moments she took to catch her breath were for naught as the black orb that hovered over her beleaguered body violently withdrew into itself. The precious air in her lungs was punched out as a pressure wave slammed into her, further indenting the small crater she lay within. As soon as it passed, she was able to quickly catch her breath once again. Riful's beleaguered mind, still reeling from the pain of her passage, gradually began to heal from its trauma; She had gone through too much far too quickly to make any truly coherent thoughts at the moment.

'_Wha-?_'

_An image of a dark orb tinged blue around its perimeter._

_'Where am-?'_

_An image of a forest clearing on a sunny day, much of the undergrowth and trees surrounding it destroyed._

_'Why does it-?'_

_An image of a large, double-edged sword with a blade that widened towards a hilt with an intricate cross guard as wide as the grip was long, a strange symbol etched near the base of the silver blade._

These were but a few of the half-formed thoughts that were quickly fabricated and discarded within her mind as she lay within the crater. As seconds ticked by, her healing mind regenerating its higher brain functions, a new thought began to form. One that, while suitable for the occasion, was meant for a group of people in another universe.

'_WHAT HAVE THEY DONE TO ME!?_'

**X~X~X**

Riful was quite proud of her knowledge of warrior techniques, gained from years of study, practice, and/or observation:

The 'Hell Driver' sword technique.

The 'Dragon Skin' body manipulation technique.

The 'Nightstalker' hunting technique.

She was a veritable database of Claymore abilities and fighting styles. With this knowledge, she was able to pin down an opponent/ally's strengths/weaknesses and adapt herself to them. This was one of the reasons why she was once a No.1 and why Riful was presently feeling alarmed; She had absolutely no knowledge of the strange technique used against her, whether it had been its strengths or even prior hints of its existence. The only way that would be possible was if the Organization kept it a secret, even from their own ranks, by training the warrior(s) whom made use of it in isolation at Staff or, more likely, in a remote location.

It was, with these thoughts in mind, that a rage she had never felt before began to build; She had been content to let the Organization do as they will, but that would now seem to have been a mistake that came to stab her in the back. Now that they had a viable weapon to use against her, the Organization would stop at nothing in order to destroy her.

This was something that would not come to pass if she had anything to say about it.

**X~X~X**

Riful's eyes fluttered open slowly and painfully, ears still ringing from the very-recent onslaught they had suffered, while blood, _ her blood_, began to congeal all across her body. The first thing she saw were colors and shades; Whites, greys, blacks, and browns. These colors and shades, blurry in her current field of vision, slowly began to sharpen into clarity; Stone, and dirt. She stared at the churned earth and pulverized granite with half-lidded eyes for several seconds as she tried to understand where the speckled rock came from; There was none in the clearing from what she had seen. Movement at the edge of the crater broke her train of thought. She focused her gaze on a person as they stood over her, their body hidden under a dark veil of cloth and leather before a dark red backdrop, as she silently cursed her still-impaired hearing; She would have noticed him sooner otherwise. Not yet knowing of her transition to a different world, Riful presumed this man to be the only thing that had a similar appearance from her world.

'_… Of course. How thoughtless of me. I almost forgot about how tactless these recent generations have proven themselves to be; Always seem to be in need of a guiding hand... Though, I am surprised to actually see a Handler here in the field... I don't believe I've ever- No, I remember seeing Dae going out that one day... Something about learning how to lower the chances of rejection or some such... Wait... What happened to the sun...?'_

As she pondered the 'sudden' change in lighting while glaring icily at the blurry figure looming over her with unfocused eyes, Riful began to make plans.

All of them included turning the handler above her and the mystery warriors into distant memories.

**X~X~X**

Musashi's entire body was trembling, but it was not from fear; Years of research, done by a couple of Uzumaki seal makers that had converted to the true faith after the fall of their homeland (he cared not for their names or their land of origin, only the results of their studies) along with the scrutiny of a couple of stolen kunai belonging to the Yondaime Hokage (heavily warded to prevent their usage by said man, of course), was all for _nothing_. As he stared at the child that was slowly beginning to come back to her senses, noting the girl to be coated in places by what he believed to be her own dried blood (he wasn't absolutely certain due to the dull-red lighting within the ritual chamber playing havoc with his vision), he mentally reviewed the procedures for the summoning.

'_Where did we go wrong? Was the location inadequate? The sacrifices insufficient? Was the seal made incorrectly? Just where the hell did we go wrong?..._'

He was broken from his thoughts when one of his cohorts, Kyoji Tenji, sidled up to him and, after taking a few moments to make himself presentable, spoke.

"... Was the summoning a success, Musashi-sama?"

Turning his head back to Tenji, Musashi retorted with a scathing snarl.

"Look at this _child_! Does it _look_ like the ritual was a success?!"

Tenji took a couple more steps towards the crater before he looked down into the indentation, locking his eyes on Riful, and frowned.

"I can't really say that our purpose for the ritual has been met, Musashi-sama... Though, in a way, it was a suc-"

Musashi silenced the devotee with a hard smack to his head, forcing the robed figure to stumble before falling onto his side.

"Don't get flippant with me, _boy_! I have neither the want or need to give allowance for your impudence..."

Tenji coughed before he stood back up. Once he was back onto his feet, hood down and showing the face of a redhead in his late teens, he bowed low before the Blood Cardinal.

"Forgive me of my foolishness, Musashi-sama; It will not happen again..."

The Blood Cardinal 'Hmph'd before he turned back towards the indentation in the chamber floor.

"All shall be forgiven after your stay in _The Box_."

Ignoring the rapid paling of the younger Jashinist, Musashi began to scrutinize the child once more, his previous rage towards the girl greatly diminished, as his mind tried to find a use for her. He was, however, surprised to see the girl fully conscience and glaring angrily at him. While by itself only a slight shock, the fact that she had also lost as much blood as she had and was able to stay awake made it all the more interesting. As such, Musashi couldn't help but ponder her strength of will. An idea suddenly clicked and, smirking cruelly, muttered lowly so that only he himself could hear.

"_... Perhaps there is something to be salvaged from this failure. Once we indoctrinate you to our cause, you may prove to be a most productive servant of Jashin-sama..._"

**X~X~X**

Her hearing was still shot and her muscles screamed in protest, but Riful had regained enough control of her body otherwise to finally lash out at the thrice-damned handlers standing over her. The first one to be targeted was the young redhead; While it was interesting to watch the interactions between the two Organization members, now wasn't exactly the time for observation; All she needed to currently know was who was in charge of this hunting party. As crimson blood from the shredded remains of the redhead rained upon her nude body, courtesy of her pitch-black tendrils, Riful quickly wrapped the other handler up with more of the deadly appendages.

She needed something to use against the Organization and those mystery warriors.

As she watched the handler squirm within her grasp while spreading her yoki detection senses out in order to detect her would-be hunters, she couldn't help letting her mouth quirk up into a smirk. _'Arrogant, conniving fools the lot of them. Always acting as if they are in total control..._'

As her detection net finished forming, Riful wasn't too surprised to feel foreign energy all around her. What did surprise her was how _strange_ it felt. As Riful shakily began to stand up, The annoying ringing within her ears finally beginning to dull and the energy around her remaining unchanged, she was able to get a good look at her surroundings. She blinked.

Once.

Twice.

This place was no clearing in a forest.

Just beyond the shocked forms of hooded figures stood immense columns and walls, chiseled from granite, that stood in a semi-circular pattern around the the immense room she stood within. On the far wall and down what corridors she could see from her position were rows of what appeared to be glass lamps, their unnaturally-steady flames lighting the way for whomever it may concern. Connecting each lamp was a strand of wire that disappeared behind corners and walls, the purpose for the strands unknown to her. Hanging from the walls were exquisite tapestries of red and black with gold trimmings. Centered on these tapestries was a black symbol on a red background; a triangle circumscribed within a circle. Sitting next to the walls were the occasional stack of crates, barrels, and sporadically-placed metal poles with the same symbol sewn into the tapestries held proudly aloft for all to see. The floor, or at least what little undamaged sections that remained, was made entirely from stone; Its flat surface polished to a shine. She noticed that in sections of flooring closest to her, warped and fractured from whatever brought her to this place, reddish stains that gave off the most alluring aroma; Human blood.

The most interesting thing she saw in the room, however, was when she turned around to find a ragged wall of granite. While it was unremarkable by itself, what was _glowing_ on its surface made her do a double-take; Intricate symbols were carved (or drawn; she did not know which) into the granite wall from top to bottom. They were even on the ceiling, the alien energy she felt pulsing through them and bathing the chamber a crimson hue. Looking at them, Riful couldn't help but be angered by the ethereal display; She should have noticed it all sooner!

Riful turned her head towards the man in her grasp when the annoying ringing in her ears was replaced with his annoying voice

"...これの意味は何ですか!私が行こう！"

Riful openly stared at the man in her grasp; She understood none of the words pouring out of his mouth. She pulled the handler closer to herself, keeping a close eye on all of the other hooded figures kneeling, of all things, in the chamber, and spoke warningly to the now-still man.

"Please stop playing whatever silly game this is meant to be; I am simply in no mood for such nonsense..."

**X~X~X**

"... Bitte aufhören zu spielen, was dummes Spiel dieser sein soll, ich bin einfach nicht in der Stimmung für so einen Unsinn."

Musashi openly stared at the child/creature holding him in her grasp; He understood none of the words she had just spoken. When she had first attacked, he immediately assumes she to be the holder of a Bloodline, a powerful one if he were to give his opinion. He thrashed against the tendrils that had once made-up her arm. He stopped, however, when she brought him closer to herself. As the distance between the two grew slimmer, Musashi was finally able to get a good look at her. What he had originally mistaken for dried human blood was, instead, a purplish fluid that was, even now, coagulating in a few spots. There was only one explanation; She was a Demon and the purplish fluid on her body was her blood. His thoughts were confirmed as she spoke to him in an alien tongue a moment later; Nothing else but Demons could possibly speak such a guttural language. Her speech finished, there was only one thing to do.

"PRAISE JASHIN! THE HARBINGER OF FAITH HAS ARRIVED! OUR-"

**X~X~X**

Riful was absolutely confused by what was happening. The man she was holding went from silent contemplation of her words to ecstatic shouting, the word "Jashin" or some subtle variant of it used repeatedly within his strange language. Upon hearing him, the other figures in the room fell from kneeling into outright bowing towards her. Sensing a possible trap, she spread her Yoki detection net further, but nothing had changed. As such, there was something she simply had to have answered.

Just where in the nine hells was she?

Riful took a couple shaky steps towards the edge of the crater, planning on exiting the odd building to scan the surrounding lands. As she did, she saw a spark of anticipation enter the bound man's eyes; A trap?

She immediately came to a halt and prepared herself for an ambush, but was stopped when the man somehow was able to free one of his arms from her bindings and began to wave it in front of her, shouting the incomprehensible language once more.

**X~X~X**

Musashi noticed her tense as she prepared to exit the crater. At first he thought his cohorts had somehow spooked her, but immediately dropped that thought; What would a being such as she have to fear from mere mortals such as he and his flock? It than immediately struck him; She had been looking at the seals on the wall earlier as if it was her first time seeing such things.

There were seals, inactive at the moment, placed onto the floor of this chamber.

Based upon how she was acting, Musashi believed she had detected them and thought she was about to be attacked! Quickly, he freed one of his arms from her bindings using a shinobi trick he had learned during his early days as a Tokubetsu Jonin and began to wave his free arm in front of her. He had, luckily, caught her attention before she had done anything too drastic.

"WHOA WHOA WHOA! You have nothing to fear here among us, Holy One! We are your-"

Musashi was cut off when pain, _glorious pain_, sprang forth from his wrist.

**X~X~X**

She had stabbed the fool's wrist with a tendril and wriggled it around within his flesh but, instead of screaming his head off like a normal human would, the man was _moaning_ as if he found pleasure from having her cut into him. Even as she stared incredulously at him, the man jerked a couple of times in her grasp.

The weird human was humping her 'hand'!

Now fully healed though still rather bloody, Riful squawked in indignation and dropped the now-revealed silver-haired man, his aged face grinning in ecstasy, before she began to fling her arm about in a rather humorous, though utterly futile, attempt to remove the memory of his revolting actions.

"._.. You... You defaced my hand!_" She whispered, cradling her hand as if it were poisoned while glaring at the human twitching spasmodically on the floor. Her disgust instantly switched to anger. "It is only proper that I return the favor!" She snarled before another, _untainted_, tendril flew forth from her head to remove the hand from his damaged wrist. The results, however, were not what she was expecting.

The man quickly recollected himself from whatever euphoric trance he was in and lept high into the air, dodging her attack, before falling back towards the floor. Alighting upon the cold granite, he immediately turned towards her and began waving his hands in a friendly attempt to calm Riful, smiling lightly all-the-while, as she prepared to unleash hell. Cautiously, she decided to listen to him; She was still angry with him, but there were simply too many things not adding up:

The warriors she had been searching/waiting for had yet to appear or even be detected.

The man before her was clearly human but was able to easily jump twelve feet into the air just now.

Thinking about it now, these humans had more than enough time to end her life, as infuriating as that thought was, while she was incapacitated.

Strangest of all, the people in the chamber were not showing any fear, like she had come to expect from humans whom discovered her 'secret', but instead bowing to her as if she were a-

_'...God... How absolutely fascinating! If I am correct, these humans seem to have abilities not too dissimilar to those of a warrior of the Organization; Without the need to implant the flesh and blood of a Yoma. Yet they also show now revulsion to a creature such as myself; Almost as if they have never encountered or had prior knowledge of an Awakened Being... Yet they show a morbid love for pain... Hmmm... perhaps not so much "love" as they feel "pleasure" from pain..._'

She brought a finger up to her chin as the tendril receded back into her head and hummed in thought...

**X~X~X**

Maybe, just maybe, something incredible had happened; Something that was told only in fairy tales or by crazy drunks. Riful had heard stories throughout her life of worlds completely different from her own; Worlds that held fantastical powers, great mysteries, and powerful dangers hidden away by secret entrances. She had always drawn amusement from how some unwitting hero somehow always inadvertently stumbled upon the world and, always, became the savior for some damsel in distress or failing society. The heroes were usually seen as men (damn the sexist society she came from) with great strength and valor, but of ordinary backgrounds, that were either initially seen as the hope of some person/group or as a tool for an eventually-overthrown antagonist of some sort; Sometimes they even started off as being revered like gods by the people of the 'new' world. Never had Riful dreamed that _she_ of all people would ever become an unwitting 'hero' to be dragged into a land far, far away.

Perhaps today was the beginning of a new 'adventure' for her.

**X~X~X**

Stepping forward, Riful's bare foot made contact with the surface of the undamaged flooring. As soon as it did, crimson symbols began to branch out from where her foot touched before they completely covered the chamber floor, forming an intricate pattern of pulsing shapes, lines, and curves. Though slightly unexpected, a smile crept onto her face as nothing malignant happened. She looked up to see the silent figures scrutinizing her, the robed man she had been holding hostage earlier giving her a knowing smirk under the dull-red light, and awaited their reaction. Almost as one, the others began to cheer in a mixture of delight and religious reverence.

She quickly walked up to their 'leader' as the noise died down and tried to convey her need to go outside using hand motions, seeing as verbal and possibly written language was useless at the moment. He seemed to understand her plight as he began to lead her and the other robed figures down winding halls and other spacious rooms, his and the others' robes shifting and ruffling from the brisk walk through the well-lit spaces, before finally opening a great wooden door to the outdoors. She hurriedly slipped past him and found a spot near some ruined columns that afforded her a good spot from which to do what she came to do. quickly plopping herself onto the cool earth while ignoring the questioning gaze of the old man, she stretched her yoki senses out; The strange energy she found in the building seemed to be everywhere, but the energy she was most familiar with was... lovingly absent.

Riful stared at the picturesque mountainside in front of her for a few moments, taking delight in watching some shrubs sway in the afternoon breeze, before one of the robed figures meandered over and offered her a robe; She accepted, seeing as her sundress had been destroyed. As Riful and the cultists began to return to the dark embrace of he Jashinist temple chiseled out of the side of a mountain, she held a dainty hand up to her mouth and lightly giggled. That confirmed it; It would appear that this was to be the start of her 'fairy tale'.

Her first act as 'god', or whatever she was to these people, was to punish the old man for perversion before having a meal and taking a well-deserved nap.

**X~X~X**

**Sorry again about the wait. I tried to have Riful operate under a "fight-or-flight" mode through the majority of this chapter, seeing as she was "defeated" by a "mystery warrior(s)' technique" only to wake up in the middle of a Jashinist Temple surrounded by cultists. Twas harder to write than I had initially thought. **

**Non-English text was made using Google Translate; Don't get angry with me if some of the word structure is off.**


	4. Chapter 4

Uploaded: 3/29/2013.

Written: 3/25-29/2013

Edited: 6/02/2013 (Version 1.1)

**Hello again! Krieg here with the next chapter of RftA! **

**Don't forget to leave a review!**

"Talking/Jutsu"

"_Whispering"_

'_Thinking'_

"Text in a book"

"**Demon/Summon talking**"

"_Demon/Summon Whispering"_

**'**_**Demon/Summon thinking'**_

_FYI: My stories shall all be rated "M" for safety's sake. FanFiction is not responsible for the content presented within this story._

Disclaimer: I will make it clear that I do not own Claymore/Naruto or any of its characters, settings, storyline, and/or techniques save my own creations.

**X~X~X~X~X**

**Redemption from the Abyss**

**X~X~X~X~X**

"... Soooo boooored..."

Another lovely day in Fire Country was coming to an end as Hagane Komoru glanced over to her bandage-wearing partner.

"I know your bored to death, friend o' mine, but this duty of ours is a necessary and important position within the village. Besides, it's not THAT bad."

Kamizuki Hiru glared hard at his best friend, head laying upon the wooden desk of the guard station. He and his partner-in-crime were the two chunin colloquially known as the 'Gatekeepers of Konoha' for their frequent stint as guards/inspectors at one of Konoha's three main entrances. It was an important job within the Shinobi Village but an incredibly dull job as well.

"I know its an important role, Komoru, but its just... Nothing _EVER_ happens! All we ever do is sit here, stare across a road, and have the occasional person sign in or out when they come by." He emphasized his point by waving around the two clipboards holding the sign-in and sign-out sheets.

Komoru sighed; This was not the first time she had to deal with her antsy partner. There were times during their duty as guards where Hiru could become absolutely insufferable; This was quickly becoming one of those days. It wasn't to say that he hated performing his duties; He just found guard duty to be less exciting than escort missions or even some D-Rank missions. She knew, however, the perfect way to keep him quite and focused... for a time.

"How about this; If you can stay focused for the rest of this shift, I'll buy you a couple bottles of that syrup you like so much."

Hiru perked up; He had an addiction to syrup since his early Academy days.

"Mama Yamaka's maple syrup?"

Komoru nodded an affirmative. "That's the one."

Hiru shot back up, a picture-perfect example of attentiveness. Komoru chuckled at his antics; It kinda reminded her of-

"Say... How is that brat of yours doing? A little birdie dropped by and told me he graduated from the Academy and has his own genin team now."

The light-skinned brunette chuckled. Of course her friend would want to talk about her son; Said boy acted more like Hiru than anything else.

"He is doing well. He does his chores and trains hard everyday, just like his father. Its kinda funny, but I can't get him to stop wearing those bandages you gave him for his 11th birthday." Komoru, along with Hiru, chuckled at the recent memory of the boy. "I met his teammates the other day and they seem like they are pretty good; I really liked the girl on his team while the other one..." She looked over to her teammate while he looked back expectantly. "... He was okay." Hiru pouted at her calling his son 'okay'.

"Only 'okay'?"

Komoru smirked. "Yup; Only 'okay'." She laughed as Hiru hung his head morosely before she continued on, regaining his attention. "I also spoke briefly with his jonin-sensei. The man was pretty well-rounded and had a lot of experience in the field; As to be expected from a jonin. Though, he did say he was better with kenjutsu than most other jonin." Komoru glanced over to her friend, only to see him smirking slightly; She did not believe the smirk had anything to do with her son's team. "Of course, you probably had something else in mind when you started this little conversation..."

Hiru's smirk widened into a sly grin.

"How did Kotetsu like that little graduation present I sent him?"

Faster than the eye could see, Hiru was a steaming mess of mangled limbs on the ground courtesy of Komoru's Motherly Fist of Wrath.

"YOU GAVE HIM A DOZEN BOTTLES OF SYRUP! DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW MUCH OF A PAIN IN THE ASS IT IS TO CLEAN UP THAT STUFF WHEN IT SPILLS?!"

As Hiru twitched on the ground, groaning pitifully, Komoru huffed in annoyance. "I still can't believe you corrupted my lil' Kotetsu into eating that stuff. It's almost as if you did it to spite me..."

She expected Hiru to vehemently oppose her accusation, but no denials came. Komoru looked over to her partner only to find him still on the earthen floor of the inspection station, twitching feebly. She felt a bead of sweat trickle down the back of her head.

'_Perhaps I overdid it..._'

She was about to help Hiru when something out of the corner of her eyes drew her attention away from her downed teammate towards the dirt road leading into the village. She was slightly surprised to see a woman with long, ribbon-like black hair pulling a small cart of goods towards the gate of Konoha in the waning light. The woman herself looked to be in her mid twenties and wore a yellow dress, a pair of dark-green sandals, and a yellow sun hat made of straw that accentuated her natural beauty. The chunin noted that the woman had stuffed her dress's few pockets with a variety of flowers such as daisies and camellias. As the traveler walked up to her, Komoru couldn't help but feel a ping of jealousy towards the woman; Why couldn't she have a head-turning body like that? In a light and whimsical voice, the alluring traveler broke Komoru from her musings as she spoke.

"A pleasant evening to-"

**X~X~X**

"-you, Ninja-san."

As Riful spoke pleasantly to the female guard manning the walled village's inspection station, she couldn't help but feel giddy with hidden excitement. She had been on this world for less than five months and within that time she had learned some of the mannerisms, customs, history, and language of this world's inhabitants from the 'Jashinists' along with some abilities that would leave many an Organization warrior pink with envy. The initial attempts to learn the language were incredibly troublesome but had become easier when one of the Jashinist priests, an intelligent young woman that had trouble with her eyesight, began to compare words and grammar between her and Riful's languages using objects such as rocks and trees a base point from which to expand their respective vocabularies. Riful would admit to herself that, even after all these months of effort with the Jashinist woman, her grasp of their language was not perfect. Still, it was more than enough to be viewed by the land's inhabitants as a 'local'. What she did find to be absolutely enthralling were the few 'Ninja' abilities she had been taught thus far.

**X~X~X**

Riful had been shocked the first time the leading Jashinist, an aged man named Musashi whom she had originally mistaken for a Handler, walked across a wall and ceiling using the strange energy that had been smothering the room she had originally been summoned in. She was further surprised when, after carefully wording questions using the limited vocabulary available to her at the time, he revealed that his ability were fueled by something called 'Chakra', a self-generated energy produced by the human body that held characteristics similar to that of yoki, and said she could possibly learn to utilize such abilities for herself; All he had to do was ascertain how large her yoki reserves were in order to prepare a training schedule. At first, Riful was against letting anyone, much less a cultist, measure her strength or train her; She seethed at the mere idea of being analyzed in such a way. Alas, she relented at the prospect of learning new and devastating abilities; She wasn't so arrogant as to believe that she was invincible, especially here in this little-known land.

Musashi had literally been floored when she released the restraints hiding the entirety of her yoki.

When her training began in earnest a few days later, Riful had been surprised by the ease at which she learned the 'Shinobi' techniques Musashi offered to teach her. The 'Blood Cardinal' (A rather silly title in her opinion) was also surprised by her rapid progress and, in response, upped her training schedule; Within a month of fervent effort she had learned the 'basic' techniques along with knowledge of a few basic control exercises. Musashi had been ecstatic by her accomplishment and offered to teach her some fighting techniques, 'taijutsu' he called them. It was an offer Riful eagerly accepted; While they proved to be inferior to the close-quarter-combat moves of a vast majority of Claymores, there was still the possibility that they may give her some ideas for future fighting techniques.

He had went on to test Riful for an 'elemental affinity' a few days after completing the basics. When she was handed the small slip of paper, she had been confused; What did a measly piece of paper have to do with discovering her 'element'? Her question was promptly answered when she was told to channel her yoki through it.

It had been cut cleanly in half as soon as her yoki bled into the paper, causing the cultist to grin wickedly.

After accepting a meal presented to her by the cultists that day (Still wasn't as weird as her first meal; The cultist she had on her first day would not stop giggling...) and bathing to remove the blood, Riful was given a scroll by Musashi; It contained details to a wind-based technique that he thought she could use to devastating effect. Quickly reading the contents of the scroll, she had made it her goal to learn to utilize this newfound gift; Musashi was awestruck when he saw her reduce a massive pillar of granite into dust a mere two months after giving her the scroll. After that, she went about mastering the four techniques she knew to a point where she didn't need to use handsigns or her voice to help form or channel them; She would be damned if she allowed herself to telegraph her attacks to whatever enemy she may face in the future. The process to master her new abilities was a long and grueling task, but was entirely worth the blood and sweat she had shed.

Alas, things eventually began to dull in the Jashinist temple four-and-a-half months after Riful's initial arrival; There simply wasn't much of anything to do except train, eat, sleep, and talk to the weird people around her. Riful's spark for exploration came when she asked Musashi during one of their taijutsu sparring sessions where he had learned his techniques. From that question came a short history lesson about the Shinobi System and the 'Hidden Villages'. She had been fascinated by the prospect of an entire village of humans able to wield such wondrous abilities go about performing missions such as guard duty and assassinations. That curiosity eventually led to her leaving the Jashinist conclave, despite much protest, and traveling to the nearest 'Hidden Village'; Konohagakure. That decision led to her current predicament.

**X~X~X**

"...Umm, how may I help you, miss...?"

Riful was broken from her reminiscing of the last couple of months by the guard's questioning... question.

"Oh! Forgive me for spacing-out like that. What was it that you said?"

The woman chuckled while Riful mentally fumed; It was such lack of awareness that got many Claymores and Awakened Beings killed. She had trained hard over her many years as both a Warrior and an Awakened Being to crush such absentmindedness; It would appear that she was getting out of practice in this new world.

"It's alright; I do it from time to time myself. I asked how I could help you, miss."

Oh, well that wasn't the response she was predicting; Riful had expected the embodiment of military decorum when she began planning to come to the shinobi village.

"Well, I was wondering if I may enter your fair village in order to sell my goods; I have heard that Konoha takes care of visiting merchants splendidly."

That was, at least, what the previous owner of the cart and clothes had told her about this village before she was rent asunder. It didn't really matter to Riful one way or another as she had little interest in currency.

"Of course! But first, I'll need to check you and your cart for any contraband along with having you sign-in. Here's a pen and the sheet you'll need to sign is attached to the clipboard over there."

After the brunette handed Riful the black pen and waved towards the general direction of the sign-in/sign-out sheets, she stood up from her seat and went through a doorway in the back. She reappeared a few moments later walking out of the shadows cast by the guard shack and immediately went to the small cart of goods. After taking a few moments to figure out what a 'Clipboard' was before writing her alias, Katsuya Mina, down on the paper, Riful spent the rest of her time watching the guard go about her duties before being frisked and ultimately allowed entry into Konoha.

Walking through the imposing gates, Riful's first real glimpse of Konohagakure made her wonder whose foolish joke it was to call this place a 'Hidden Village'; The 'village' was clearly a sizable city.

After finding a place to store the small wagon, she searched for a suitable location to rest; She could do her sight-seeing of the city tomorrow.

**X~X~X**

Riful woke up early the next day in a wonderful mood. After yawning and taking a few moments to stretch her sleepy muscles, she dawned the dress, slipped on her shoes she had been wearing the other day, and placed the wide-brimmed sun hat atop her head before jumping out of the large Oak she had decided to sleep in. Smoothing out a few wrinkles and removing some minor dirt stains that had formed in the dress overnight, Riful walked through the small forest within the city towards Konoha's Marketplace. As she did, she couldn't help but be awed by the amount of foliage within the city; It was far more beautiful and lively than she had previously expected. The Oaks, grass, and bushes of the city's park/forest eventually gave-way to wooden houses, colorfully-painted shops, and tall 'Power Poles' that held rubber-coated 'Power Lines' high above the streets of packed dirt and pavement.

As Riful meandered leisurely through the streets and alleys of Konoha, she observed the city inhabitants slowly wake up and begin to go about their daily routines; Children would talk animatedly with their friends as they made their way to school. Store owners would restock their shelves before opening-up and begin hawking their goods to any and all that passed by. Laborers and couriers rushed to-and-fro, carrying their packages to wherever they were needed. She was delighted to see an occasional Shinobi/Kunoichi jumping across the rooftops or walking down the streets. It was during this time, watching a few humans go about their lives on a largely-vacant street, that Riful accidentally bumped into someone.

"Oh! Umm... Sorry about that. Are you okay?"

Riful was about to start snarling at the blundering fool that bumped into her but stopped when she saw who exactly bumped into her; A beautiful, red-headed woman of fair skin wearing a high-collared, sleeveless white blouse under a long, loose-fitting green dress was looking worriedly at her through azure eyes. Riful idly noted the woman's long, bright-red hair was parted to the left side of her face with a small clip and that her belly was swollen from the late stages of pregnancy as she replied to the redhead with a polite tone.

"I am unharmed; Simply startled. The real question is are you alright?"

The other woman grinned weakly, scratching the back of her head in embarrassment.

"Heheh, I'm alright; It'll take a lot more than that to put me down! Anyway, I don't believe we've-"

"Kushina!"

Looking over to the side, Riful finally noticed the older woman whom had just interrupted the now-named Kushina. She wore a a purple 'Kimino' along with an off-white 'Haori'. The elder's long, brown hair was tied-up into a ponytail that fail down her back. Her face, interestingly enough, had little in the way of wrinkles. Looking into her deep brown eyes, Riful could see the cunning intelligence behind them; This was not a woman to be trifled with.

"Y-yes, Biwako-san?"

Biwako crossed her arms over her chest as she glared up at the younger woman before her.

"What did I tell you after we left Mikoto?"

Riful watched in veiled amusement as Kushina seemed to shrink before the older woman.

"Oh. R-right." Turning around, Kushina gave Riful an apologetic smile. "Well, I've gotta run so I'll talk to you later... Umm..."

Riful chuckled lightly, hiding it with the palm of her hand, as the older woman began to drag the taller redhead away. She understood the unasked question though and, on a whim, decided to tell the woman her real name.

"My name is Riful."

The other woman gave her a wide grin as she was led further down the street.

"It's good to meet you, Riful-san! I'm Uzumaki Kushina and I'm going to be the best mother EVER, 'ttebane!"

"DAMMIT, KUSHINA!"

Riful waved towards the other woman as she was dragged out of sight, chuckling at her antics. She slowly let her arm drop a few moments later and smiled.

'_That's good to hear, Kushina..._'

Clapping her hands together, Riful turned around and began to happily walk back the way she had came, smiling as she continued her exploration of Konoha on the breezy day of October 10th.

'_Nothing beats the taste of a newborn's innards, after all._'

**X~X~X**

**The security at the entrance was lax due to it being peace-time conditions; The inspection would have been more invasive otherwise.**

**Riful is a quick study due to her intelligence and the complete control she has over her yoki (It could be said that she's like Sakura in that aspect). **

**While I am unsure as to how a truly-canon Riful would react to being offered training, mine will not be so foolish as to decline such an opportunity at increasing her strength and/or knowledge.**

**If I remember correctly from Naruto canon, Chakra Natures usually take a ninja a year (minimum) to learn to use. For Riful, I needed her to learn it quickly in order to have a chance against Kurama.**

**There will be no eating of Naruto in this fic.**

**(ADDITION) Previous reasoning behind Riful's ability to change her human body's age was, simply put, idiotic. Got something that could better explain the sudden appearance of this ability, but it will take a while for the idea to be fully fleshed-out within the fic.**


	5. Chapter 5

Uploaded: 7/01/2013.

Written: 4/01 - 7/01/2013

Edited: 7/07/2013 - (Version 1.01)

**Hello again! Krieg here with the next chapter of RftA! Sorry for leaving you all hanging like that: Had to deal with a theme park full of writer's block and bullshit. **

**Anyways, much of the Naruto character dialogues presented in this chapter were directly pulled from canon Naruto (chapters 500-505) in order to keep a semblance of canon events before Riful begins to screw it all to hell and gone. The first section is kinda meh, seeing as it's simply novelized canon, but the other half was rather difficult to write in such a way as to keep Riful from being OOC (Not too sure I was even able to prevent that to a degree). **

**Unsure how this chapter will be received due to its conclusion. The last section of this chapter is what has been holding me up this entire time. Love it or hate it, PLEASE let me know what you think!**

"Talking/Jutsu"

"_Whispering"_

'_Thinking'_

"Text in a book"

"**Demon/Summon talking**"

"_Demon/Summon Whispering"_

**'**_**Demon/Summon thinking'**_

_FYI: My stories shall all be rated "M" for safety's sake. FanFiction is not responsible for the content presented within this story._

Disclaimer: I will make it clear that I do not own Claymore/Naruto or any of its characters, settings, storyline, and/or techniques save my own creations.

**X~X~X~X~X**

**Redemption from the Abyss**

**X~X~X~X~X**

"... Congratulations, it's a healthy baby boy!"

At a secret location hidden deep within the forests surrounding Konohagakure, a new life was brought kicking and screaming into the world. While wiping hours-worth of accumulated sweat from his tanned face, Namikaze Minato, the 'Yellow Flash' and current leader of the Village Hidden within the Leaves, chuckled lightly in both relief and happiness at the sight of his newborn son.

"Ha ha... Look at me, I'm a father!"

Uzumaki Kushina, the 'Red-Hot Habanero' and latest mother in Konoha, breathed deeply to recover from the painful ordeal of childbirth as the other two women in the spacious candle-lit room, Biwako and Taji, cut the umbilical cord and cleaned the infant of amniotic fluids before wrapping him in a white blanket. Taji, ANBU member and a medical nin of great skill, quickly brought the bawling boy over to Kushina for her to see. Gazing lovingly at her crying child, a boy with whisker-like birthmarks, three on each cheek, and blond tufts of hair weighing in at a diminutive 6.2 pounds, Kushina couldn't help but feel something rise within her, something she had never before felt in her life; Motherly pride.

"_Naruto... I finally get to meet you..._" She whispered, tears of joy cascading down her cheeks. Taji, watching the two meet for the first time, couldn't help the smile that graced her lips. No one, save for the bawling child, made a sound lest they somehow ruin the moment for the new family. It lasted a second, though it may have been eternity, before the mother and child's tender moment was interrupted as Minato spoke up; As much as he hated to kill the moment the Kyuubi was, even now, trying to break free from its prison within the red-haired woman.

"Okay, Kushina! I know you're exhausted from the birth, but we've got to get the Nine-Tails completely sealed!"

Kushina took a couple of deep breaths before she spoke, gazing confidently at her husband as a slight smirk tugged at her lips. Taji carried the Infant away to perform a full medical scan on the boy with the Sandaime's wife, Biwako, as the couple renewed their struggle.

"Right!"

Minato placed his hands over his wife's engorged belly, just as he had been doing through the entirety of his love's labor. As he and Kushina began to channel chakra into the seals tattooed onto her stomach once more to stabilize the Kyuubi's prison, two pained cries resounded within the cobblestone room.

"NGHAAA!"

"KHAA!"

Minato quickly turned, keeping his hands over his startled wife's seal, only to see Taji and Biwako drop lifelessly to the floor a couple of feet away.

"Biwako-sama! Taji!"

"Fourth Hokage... Minato..."

The blond's blue eyes flickered to the source of the unknown male voice; Directly adjacent to the two fallen women was a black-robed figure, feet slightly spread apart to allow ease of movement in any direction. He stood at about 5'4", face and eyes obscured by a white one-eyed mask with what appeared to be a red, flame-like pattern painted across it from its left side to its right. He could discern some of the man's long and unruly black hair poking out from underneath the hood of his robe. The unknown figure was holding his son in the crook of his right arm. The other arm was hovering above the crying infant, uncovered hand held threateningly over the baby boy's face.

"... Back away from the Jinchuuriki or your son dies at the ripe old age of one minute."

**X~X~X**

'_What an absolutely enchanting community these humans have created._'

As Riful walked down one of Konoha's lesser populated central boulevards, she couldn't help ponder over the oddities she had encountered throughout her stay within the magnificent city; Seemingly blind people that were anything but. Clothing that would have made many men from Turiel blush and sputter. Last, but not least, was how different and beautiful the architecture displayed within the city was compared to those she was acquainted with throughout her travels in her homeland. She hummed a old pub tune as she glanced up towards the moonlit sky, spying a couple of those strange masked shinobi garbed in their black uniforms under grey vests jump across the road; It never ceased to interest her how the powerless creatures she was used to for most of her life were suddenly capable of easily outclassing a run-of-the-mill Yoma.

'_So much potential, even amongst their weakest links...' _She thought, passing a small group of genin groaning about the abuses they had received from the the day's missions/chores. Based upon her initial observations of these shinobi and knowledge gleaned from Musashi, the warriors of this land were entirely different from the ones she was used to; There were no absolute 'Defensive' or 'Offensive' warriors from what she had learned thus far but instead well-rounded soldiers that, while unable to reattach limbs in moments like the silver-eyed halfbreeds of the Organization or extend their appendages like a Yoma, were exceedingly capable nonetheless; All this without taking in the flesh and blood of some inhuman creature. It made her wonder how they would compare in combat against a warrior of the Organization. She blinked as a rather devious thought entered her mind. _'Hmmm... Maybe I should put that potential to the test; Something that would allow insight into how they perform while under pressure... A light skirmish near the city border?_'

She hummed in thought before shaking her head, passing under one of the city's seemingly-limitless street lights as meandering groups of humans chattered amiably amongst themselves.

_'That will not do. As interesting as it would be, they would be held back by the normal human population lest those weak things be caught in the crossfire and, if they were able to evacuate the weaklings, there would likely be too many of them in one location to be fully effective. What I want is something that will force these warriors to showcase not only their combat capabilities and teamwork but their capacity for problem-solving as well as their command structure...' _She idly played with her hair, brainstorming for other ideas, as she passed an elderly couple sitting on a street-side bench embracing each other lovingly. _'Perhaps the kidnapping of an important city official would open themselves up for study...'_

As she continued walking down the street, raven hair and yellow sundress swaying gently in the light breeze, plans were quickly being concocted within her mind; A lengthy and dangerous search, filled with pitfalls and false leads, that would hopefully stretch these shinobi to their breaking point and allow Riful to analyze them, in a semi-controlled environment, to the most minute of details.

_'Oh, that would be perfect! Now all I have to do is find the proper lure. A leader of some sort obviously, but one unable to use... What was it they called their abilities again... Oh yes, 'jutsu'. Would be rather pointless otherwise...' _She stopped in the middle of the boulevard as a new thought wormed its way into her mind.'_... Or maybe not? Would be interesting to see how one would react if they were held captive now that I think about it...' _She shrugged before she continued on her merry way. _'I wonder if that 'Biwako' woman holds any sway amongst the city's leaders..._'

Riful eventually stopped before a small and lightly-crowded convenience store, gazing at the artificial lighting as she became thoughtful; It had been only a couple months since she had entered this strange and wondrous world. Coming from a land where the primary form of light and heat came from the contained fury of a fire and where the primary fighting forces of the continent were made up of armies of what were essentially spear-wielding humans in steel suits, Riful was still trying to get settled into a world where pushing energy through metal cables to power things such as 'light bulbs' and cities of superhuman... _humans_ regularly used as escorts or assassins were the norm. Watching as one of the pole-like incandescent lamps in the store's ceiling flickered, causing the man working the counter to curse loudly, she momentarily pushed her plans to the back of her mind and began to imagine what other impossibilities these humans could circumvent.

_'… Next thing I know they'll be capable of raising undead armies of past warriors or somehow __weaponize the moon of all things...' _She shivered at the mere thought. _'That would be a little too exciting for my __tastes. Not like that they would ever be capable of such a-_'

Riful's thoughts would have continued had she not felt a massive burst of yoki suddenly appear almost eight miles from her position. She froze at the enormity of it; Nothing, not even she and Isley's yoki auras combined, could possibly compare to the magnitude of pure demonic energy being emitted all those miles away.

_'Wha... What is this?'_

Narrowing her eyes, Riful quickly glanced at what few shinobi that were nearby to check their reactions; They continued on with their activities as if nothing was amiss. The Abyssal 'hmmm'd in thought as she stretched her senses to their maximum range, her jovial mood displaced by the new development; Were there beings similar to herself living in this world, why couldn't these shinobi detect them, and why wasn't she told of their prior existence? Turning away from the store's glass window, Riful began to angrily stride down the earthen boulevard, unknowingly losing her straw hat.

'_Shit, why wasn't I told of this? More importantly, how could a monster of such power exist?_'

She clenched her hands as she stomped down the road, generally amusing the few adults she passed and terrifying the few children that got near her.

'_Musashi has been withholding some information... I think he and I need to have a chat when I get back...'_

Riful stopped mid-step when she sensed the distant being's power spike. Looking out towards the horizon where the monster lay hidden from view with narrowed eyes, she grit he teeth in frustration.

_'Just how much power does that thing possibly have!?'_

She glanced around once more to see how the humans were reacting but, to her dismay, they were still not responding in any way!

_'How can they not possibly feel that!?'_

Riful watched what few shinobi that were nearby in thinly-veiled disgust before striding once-more towards her destination. As she made her way towards the closest city gate she began to channel a minute amount of yoki throughout her body in preparation to unravel into her awakened form and travel to a safe distance away from the city; She did not feel the need to meet this monster anytime soon, but this development presented a valuable opportunity to observe the thing along with the city's warrior population; An opportunity that could not possibly be ignored. As the massive arched gateway from the other night came into view in the far distance, Riful began to notice the few shinobi around her tense as she walked passed. It took her a few moments to finally reason why they were acting so; They were reacting to her yoki. This only served to confuse her; Why would they tense from her yoki buildup but not from the immense pulses from earlier? As they began to turn their heads to-and-fro in search of whatever was putting them ill at ease, she subtly hastened her pace towards the massive gate.

_'No matter, If these fools cannot sense that thing's approach then they deserve whatever fate that awaits them ...'_

**X~X~X**

"See, there it is again!"

The peace of the massive multi-leveled chamber housing the Barrier Team, built deep within the confines of the village and away from prying eyes, was shattered at the outburst of one of the three shinobi maintaining vigil over Konoha's detection array. Sighing for the fourth time that day, Hizuka Mizori glanced over towards what had her comrade troubled. As soon as she saw the faint red glow within the orb of water hanging still within the room she groaned in frustration; This was the last thing she wanted to deal with.

"Renji, for the last time, it's just an error in the system. Calm yourself..."

Sitting comfortably in a kneeling position on the opposite side of the spacious water basin that took up the majority of the chamber, Renji shot his robed comrade a look of contempt; Whenever something popped up within the grid, it was 'system defect' this and ''erroneous signal' that, even after the barrier was cleared of any flaws or defects by the Maintenance Division.

"I beg to differ, Mizori."

Mizori, having been sipping upon her small cup of herbal tea at the time, sat it back down before folding her hand together upon her lap. She stayed silent for a couple of moments before speaking up.

"... Very well. Tell me, Renji, why do you believe this occurrence to be any different from past false alarms?"

Renji grimaced, thinking of an explanation that would satisfy Mizori; He couldn't simply tell her that he had 'a hunch' that this was a legitimate contact as she was one who's life was dictated by logic. As he began to impart his reasoning to Mizori the head of the Barrier Team, Senjo Takashima, watched on with interest. Takashima, a jonin in his late forties with greying hair and thin build, had picked the two up in order to bolster the number of Detection Division members. They both held exceptional potential, Renji with his instincts and Mizori with her intelligence, but he soon discovered that with those talents came a price; Renji was brash and easily influenced by his emotions while all of Mizori's actions were dictated by logic and reason. While his training had helped curb the troublesome spots in their personalities, even managing to complement each other's skills on rare occasions, they still had the tendency to clash at the most inopportune times.

Such as now.

"An error! AN ERROR!" Renji roared, his face twisted with rage as he glared bullets at his teammate. "BULLSHIT! If it were an error, it would be flying all over the grid; Laws of physics, gravity, and your so-called 'logic' be damned!" Renji bellowed before pointing at the dull red spot within the detection grid, visibly trembling as rage that had been building since the beginning of their dispute was finally unleashed.

"It has been on the ground _every_ damned time it has popped up! How the fuckin' hell is that supposed to be an error?! I mean, how can you-"

Mizori, beginning to feel the weight of the day's trials and tribulations press down upon her, was about to cut-off Renji's rant, pointing out once more that an error of that nature had appeared not even two weeks prior and that today's signature was so weak that she could possibly remove it with the application of a low C-rank Katon Technique, when Takashima beat her to it.

"Be silent, both of you..." His voice, calm as ever, ordered his two irate subordinates. He looked between the two chunin, pleased that they had ceased their pointless quarreling immediately, before turning his gaze to the center of the room. His wizened eyes, partially hidden under a lavender headdress similar to those worn by Shinto Priests, furrowed as he studied the pinprick of light within the detection grid. He ignored the looks (one curious, the other rebellious) his two subordinates gave him as he studied the light slowly moving within the levitating orb of water. A few moments of silence reigned within the marble chamber before Takashima finally turned towards the present members of the Interception Division.

"Yagujii, prepare your squad; We've got something within the city."

The Interception Division's purpose was pretty self-explanatory; They were to intercept potential threats spotted within the village borders by the Detection Division and either assess them from a distance or take them to the T&I Division for questioning. The division was made up of six five-man squads whose duties rotated throughout the week in order to keep all of its members at peak health. Hyuga Yagujii, a Jonin known for his lightning-quick reflexes and preference for using a pair of chakra-conductive Tekko as his weapons of choice, was the leader of one of these six squads. He jumped out of his seat as soon as Takashima spoke. The other four members of the Interception Division within the room, having all been playing a high-stakes game of cards while drinking sake to pass the time, were a bit slower to come to attention.

"Where is the signature located and what can we expect?" Asked Yagujii, stoic in the face of what would have been another lazy day's turn of events as he began to take a quick tally of his gear. He, like most members of the division, was taught that a threat could appear anywhere, at any moment, and to regard everyone and anything as a potential threat, including allies, until proven otherwise.

Takashima glanced back over to the orb of water hanging within the chamber before answering the ever-serious jonin.

"He or she is currently in Sector D-11 and is heading towards the Eastern Gate as we speak. They seem to have been able to keep hidden up to this point... Expect someone either capable of masking their chakra signature along with possibly being able to use minute amounts of chakra in their techniques or a low-level shinobi; Could possibly be a holder of a Kekkei Genkai as well. Be cautious in your search and stay alert; I cannot truly gauge their strength as of this time..."

Yagujii gave the man a stiff nod before disappearing in a whirlwind of leaves, an indicator of his using Konoha's variation of the Shunshin no Jutsu. The other four members of the division looked amongst each other before adjusting their earpiece radios and disappearing as well. Finally alone with his subordinates, Takashima looked back towards them and scowled as he affixed his own earpiece.

He had hoped they would take the obvious route and send the Interception Division earlier to confirm or deny their claims. Hell, he had even arranged the appearance of some of the signals over the past month in hopes they would utilize the Interception Division as they had been taught and eventually sniff him out. Alas, it seemed they still had much to learn...

**X~X~X**

The situation was devolving quickly for Riful as she strode towards the still-distant eastern gate. Not only had the weird being's yoki disappear without a trace, but she was also beginning to feel the painful burning sensation associated with the forced changes made when she changes her human form's physical characteristics; Namely, how old that form appears to be. To top it off, she could feel a couple of Shinobi moving in a search pattern towards her. While they may or may not have truly found her out quite yet, she could feel their diminutive energy flittering to-and-fro amongst alleyways and rooftops, almost taunting her with their illusive presence as they hunted her like a pack of wolves. She had tried to throw them off her trail a couple of times, but such attempts seemed to be pointless as they would reacquire her trail almost instantly. As things were, a confrontation of some sort was bound to-Oh! Well, speak of the devil.

A tall man with a flowing mane of long, silky black hair and a face sculpted into perfection eased into existence before her, his arrival signaled by a swarm of leaves and a minute burst of chakra. Riful stopped while he walked a couple of steps closer before he stood about six feet in front of her, sizing her up with weary eyes whom, she realized, belonged to the clan of the seemingly-blind humans. The other four shinobi whom she had detected immediately joined him, forming a loose circle around her to keep her contained and any onlookers out. Their appearance immediately drew the attention of every human in the vicinity, drawing them in like moths to a flame. A few seconds of peace, save for the low murmuring of the small crowd the shinobi had attracted, passed before the stoic Hyuga spoke.

"Who are you?"

It was a simple question, but it was ultimately meaningless; Both Riful and the man knew that she had been found and that, under normal circumstances, Konoha would simply interrogate her. Nevertheless, Riful had found herself in similar situations in the past and, though she loathed it, found that imitating a civilian would usually end in her getting off the hook. Knowing this, she had begun to shiver while kneading her hands together as soon as the other four shinobi had teleported in (an ability she was keen on learning) to give off the impression of fear and discomfort.

"... I-I'm Katsuya M-mina, W-what's going on?"

If the man was surprised by her forthcoming response or softened by her little act he did not show it.

"Well, Katsuya-san, I'm going to need you to come with me."

Though she was wary of the missing being, Riful knew that she had to remain calm if she had any chance of escaping this place with her identity intact. For that to happen, she had to keep him talking while she continued brainstorming ideas; Simply killing everyone here like she normally had in Turiel would be disastrous...

"N-not to sound rude, b-but why do you want to talk to m-me, shinobi-san?" She asked, bleeding some curiosity and more fear into her words to keep him thinking her to be just another civilian.

His way of response was to narrow his eyes and hold out his hand for her to take. As this was happening, Riful considered using her newfound abilities to replace herself with someone in the crowd and make a run for one of the nearby alleys, hopefully giving her enough distance to allow her to escape with her awakened form without being seen; The night skies would help hide her form as she propelled herself across the sky and out of the city...

'_Why didn't I think of planning for something like this earlier, damnit?!_'

She was startled from her thoughts when the ground beneath her began to suddenly tremble, as if something massive had crashed nearby. It was quickly followed up by a strange sensation that messed with her vision but, upon glancing at the encircling Humans, left many of them either pissing themselves or unconscious. What few humans that could withstand the unnatural pressure were looking to the north west in fright. She followed their gaze until she too saw what held them petrified where they stood or lay. A silent ping of the creature towering over the city with her yoki confirmed her fears; The Beast was here. The monster, on first glance, looked to be a mountain-sized, fox-like creature with an upper torso and arms similar to a human, lower torso and head of a fox, and nine immense fox tails that filled the clear night sky with its intimidating display. Its crimson fur, softly glowing in the dark night, hid the lean musculature and steel-like bones that helped support its massive form while patches of black fur, going from its eyes and dominating the undersides of its two massive, rabbit-like pinna (AN: Ear flaps) gave it a fearsome appearance. Within its snarling maw were rows upon rows of meter-long canines, each and every one of them glinting with promises of death.

As the unsettling sensation began to worsen, the massive demon in the distance turned towards her and, in a show of force, roared. The rancid air forced from its lungs shot forth like an avenging angel, ravaging everything that stood in its path. Riful could do nothing but stare in stunned awe is the pressure wave rushed towards her before being suddenly flung into the night sky like a ragdoll. As she flew through the air, she watched in detached fascination as people's clothes were shredded from their bodies as they too were plucked from roads or buildings and skewered mercilessly by an eclectic mix of pipes, wooden boards, and tableware. She saw that many of them were soon after crushed by buildings ripped from their foundations, ending their misery. She was carried ten blocks before the winds finally let her loose, throwing her head-first into the wall of an apartment complex already piled high with other debris. As she lay dazed by the impact more debris arrived, burying her in piles of broken masonry, splintered wooden beams, and shredded corpses. As she lay in the suffocating darkness, fighting hand and foot to keep conscious, the terrible noise began to fade away until she was left in silence. It was not too long after that her fight to keep conscious failed. As her eyes slowly closed in the darkness, giving way to a dreamless sleep, another pair of eyes flew open in the darkness.

**X~X~X**

Naruto woke up for a start, soaked in sweat under his linen bedsheets. He panted in fear, eyes rapidly panning across the ceiling and room fearfully, trying to understand where he was as he gripped his sheets tighter. It took some time for his eyes to adjust before he was able to make out some dim shapes within the darkness; A wardrobe, a bookshelf, a pile of dirty clothes, and the slight shimmer of the seals etched into the polished wood floor. It was then that he knew where he was; Home.

Naruto lay there, slowly coming down from his panic, before finally running a shaking hand over his face and through his hair. He slowly sat up from his soaked bed before flicking on the switch for the lights. They immediately turned on, momentarily blinding him. He groaned in discomfort as he reacquainted himself with the light before finally shuffling out of bed and walking tiredly to the small adjoining restroom. As he flipped the switch and entered the white-tiled room, he glared accusingly at the mirror hanging over the sink. His reflection glared back with tired silver eyes. The two held a glaring contest for a few moments before Naruto finally sighed and moved over to the toilet. As he lifted the seat, he mumbled a few words to himself.

"... _Stupid dreams and stupid giant fox-thing_."

**X~X~X**

**I do have a reason for Riful getting a concussion, so bear with me here. Anyways, sorry again about the long wait and do please leave a comment/review.**

**KM**


End file.
